Mayor Naheed Nenshi: World Mayor!

Mayor Nenshi of Calgary is the first North American to win the World Mayor's prize.

The philanthropic City Mayors Foundation awards the World Mayor Prize every two years to a mayor who has made outstanding contributions to his / her community and has developed a vision for urban living and working that is relevant to towns and cities across the world. The Prize has been awarded since 2004.

Congratulations to Mayor Nenshi on his accomplishments to date and I wish him the best as he leads Calgary through these challenging economic times.

SUMA Convention 2015: Ministers of Health

Today was a busy day. As I have indicated before I was meeting with the Ministers of Health regarding the Kindersley Health Services Needs Assessment. It was a good meeting and I am cautiously optimistic as we move forward.

I apologize but I am not able to comment on the report until the report is presented to the public in late February or early March. Sorry.

SUMA Convention 2015: President's Banquet

Tonight was the President's Banquet to celebrate the work accomplished and the coming year's aspirations. We also celebrated municipal employees who have been in the industry for at least 20 years.

President's Banquet. Feb 3/15

SUMAssure, with whom I am a Director, sponsored the meal and as a result I brought greetings to the crowd.

We also heard three poems by a performer, Bond, from Saskatoon.

Bond performing at the President's Banquet. Feb 3/2015.

SUMA Convention 2015: Chantal Hebert

A lot of us were looking forward to hearing the insights of Chantal Hebert. Ms Hebert has written a number of books about the Canadian political scene and a regular contributor to a variety of news sources.

Unfortunately the weather prevented her from travelling and then, according to Murphy's Law, we had significant problems with technology.

Here are snippets of her talk:

·         Things change quickly: the economy was strong, terror might be an issue

·         People make choices on what is being offered, as consumers, rather than loyalty to a party

·         Energy and terrorism will affect urban centres

·        The Federal government has little extra money for infrastructure

·         Infrastructure spending is a priority for municipalities, but there is no extra money due to drop in energy revenue

·         Federal spending on health will be slowing

·         Reform of pension fund is coming

·         Security and Terrorism

·         A new type of thinking is needed

·         Balance of power has shifted to urban, specifically suburban: BC, AB, ON

·         Who commands the suburbs commands power for the upcoming federal election

·         Mulcair is at a disadvantage due to reliance on urbans and not enough support in suburbs and rural

Chantal Hebert via Skype and then phone with video. Feb 3/15

 

SUMA Convention 2015: The Walk of Shame!

I wasn't even in the trade show area and I could hear the noise. As soon as I turned the corner the razzing picked up. The Walk of Shame, including the photos of shame you can see below, was because Humboldt beat us this past summer in our 'Tidy Week" contest. Thanks to Wayne Gibson for the photos.

Councillor Henry and I in Broncos sweaters. I am wearing Mayor Eaton's son's jersey from a RBC Cup appearance. Feb 3/15

All I recall is that our Youth Council did their best but there was way too much rain. I reminded Mayor Eaton of a saying of Conn Smythe: "If you can't beat them on the ice, beat them on the streets." Given the standings we thought that might help diminish the shame of wearing a Broncos' jersey.

Alas, the pain doesn't stop there: tonight, of all nights, the Klipper lost to the Broncos 4-3. I hate to say this but I am not looking forward to my breakfast meeting with Mayor Eaton.

The shame was rubbed in when we had our photos taken with the Humboldt Council.

The Humboldt Council, Sherye,Mayor Easton is beside Councillor Henry. Roger, next to me, nominated me to continue to be Director of SUMAssure, and Leon. Councillor Linda didn't pose with us.  Feb 3/15.

SUMA Convention 2015: Minister of Government Relations

Jim Reiter, Minister of Government Relations spoke this afternoon. I wish that I could write what he said but he didn't say a whole lot.

• no decision has been made regarding cuts to revenue sharing;
• he spoke about Disaster Relief and based on our first hand experience he has a great service
• a columnist from the Globe and Mail was quoted and I am going to do a paraphrase:
• in the past Sask is tomorrow's country
• today, the future isn't guaranteed,
• tomorrow is now here

Jim Reiter. Feb 3/15

SUMA Convention 2015: Preventing Council Misconduct

One of the sessions Council Henry and I took in was Preventing Council Misconduct. The speaker, Saskatoon's former lawyer had six points summarizing his presentation.

1. Put public interest First‎
2. Know the rules
3. Follow the rules
4. Create a positive ethical environment
5. Provide access to professional advice
6. Pay yourself properly

Preventing Council Misconduct. Feb 3/15

SUMA Convention 2015: Resolutions

Here are the resolutions discussed today and voted on.

1. Asset Management: carried
2. Animal Control Officer Training: carried
3. Publishing Rejected Membership Resolutions: carried
4. Public Works Certificate Program: carried
5. Bicycle Helmet Safety: carried
6. Tax Incentives for Municipal Bonds: carried
7. Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women: carried
8. Fuel Tax for Municipal Police and Fire: carried
9. Expanded Golf-Cart Use: carried
10. Motor Vehicle Collision Rates for Fire Departments: carried
11. Northern Road Maintenance and Repair: carried
12. Revenue Sharing: (preserve 1 point)carried
13. MMRP: (immediately implement) carried

Photos I Forgot to Add in SUMA Convention 2015

Community Safety Officer Session. Feb 2/15

FCM President Brad Woodside. Feb 2/15

Premier's Address. Feb 2/15

Tax Abatement Workshop. Feb 2/15

View from the Youth Panel. Feb 2/15

Another View from the Youth Panel. Feb 2/15

SUMA Convention 2015: Premier's Address

The following are some of my notes of the Premier's address.

• Revenue loss estimated $600m-$800m which is about 5%-6%
• No money for more, some same, some less
• Revenue sharing has worked well and has been consistent and stable
• Sask Party keeps commitments
• People expect politicians to respond to extraordinary conditions
• Last downturn saw main stream growth
• This time is not as bad with strong potash and agriculture
• Economic growth in 2015 expected to be 2%
• Only 2% of new jobs are in resource sector
• Provincial role is to set tone and good environment
• Budget Goal: keep strong
• Priorities:

·         low taxes,

·         income and education tax reduction,

·         new incentives,

·         controlled operational spending,

·         build infrastructure and reduce infrastructure deficit,

·         HR training, international engagement including municipalities,

·         competitiveness,

·         no deficit

• Working towards a tax revenue virtuous circle.

·         This is my understanding of the what the Premier means: where the growth in tax revenue is due to economic growth and is enough for government business and capital